What A Joyful Journey
by westpoints
Summary: [complete]'And they're just two kids, dancing in the rain' A scene between Maddie and Cody. Could be a part of 'Chocolate Bar Chronicles,' but you don't have to read it to get this. Muchly fun and fluffy.


Aech. This was actually going to be in 'Chocolate Bar Chronicles,' but I didn't think it fit as well as the end result. But I still really like it. I've altered it a little, so you might want to read 'Chocolate Bar Chronicles' to get some things. You don't have to.

But you should. It's good for your health, _and_ delicious.

**edit: Ahahaha...did you guys noice? I'm story number 666. I am duly amused.**

Actually, that's peanut butter, but y'know, so could my story. Disclaimer: Not mine

* * *

There's an insistent tapping that's echoing through the room, and Cody's about to hit something. Then he'd apologize to it, of course, but he'd derive great pleasure from hitting it.

It takes him a little while to realize that the tapping is actually someone knocking at the door, and that because his mother and Zack are out finding Zack a guitar, he's the only left to answer the door.

It occurs to him that his last thought was a very long sentence.

The door swings open to reveal Maddie, out of her candy counter uniform. "Hey. What are you doing here?" She smiles and holds up a grocery bag.

"I got Mosbey to give me the night off. And then I stole these." Cody smiles back.

"You stole them?"

"Oh, I'll pay for them, don't worry." He steps aside to let her in, but she just reaches out and grabs his hand. "Come on."

She drags him out into the hallway and into the stairwell before he gets the chance to ask, "Where are we going?"

"To the roof, silly," she tells him, already dragging him up the flight of stairs.

"But it's raining!" Maddie just laughs and tugs on his arm.

"Oh come on, you've never sat on the roof in the rain before?" He opens his mouth and closes it several times.

"Yes—no! No I haven't! And I don't think this is a good idea. You could get pneumonia, or hypothermia or...other diseases ending in 'ia.'"

"Relax, it's just summer rain. Now come on, I'm not going to spend our night talking about diseases ending in 'ia' in a stairwell." She gives him a swift peck on the cheek and continues up the stairs. He follows her reluctantly up to the roof. "See?" she yells over the traffic sounds, slightly filtered by the height. "You can barely feel it!"

She puts the bag down and pulls him out into the rain. "Dance," she commands. She lets go and twirls on the roof, coming dangerously close to the edge before spinning away as Cody starts to reach out. "Come on, dance!" Maddie takes his outstretched hands and takes him spinning with her.

He smiles at her nervously as a huge, very cold drop of water, landed on his head. "I think it's getting heavier," he says to her.

"What?"

"I think it's getting heavier!" he yells. She leads the way back to the stairwell, where they lean against the door, propping it open. "Maybe we should go inside," Cody whispers to her.

Maddie fumbles around in the bag. "It's a summer rain. The cold part will go away in a few minutes." The cold breeze from the rain reaches them. "Oh, that feels awesome." She presents him with a 5th Avenue. "Yours." She pulls out a Crunch bar. "Mine."

He grabs the bar and unwraps it eagerly. "You remembered!"

"Why would I forget?" she asks teasingly. He blushes. "Aw, you're so cute." She pulls his head down and kisses him quickly. "I don't think I've ever danced in the rain with a guy." He smiles and kisses her again. "Don't think I've kissed a guy in the rain, either."

"Don't think I've done it either."

"Kissed a guy in the rain?" He rolls his eyes at her. "You know I love ya." He bites off the end of his candy bar and chews. "Oh what is this, a stall tactic?"

He quickly swallows. "Not at all. I just wanted to partake of this delicious food before it melted in my hand." She mock-glares at him to continue. "And...I love you too." She breaks off the 'C' on her bar. "Now who's stalling?"

"The rain's let up," she says when she's done. "Come on. You haven't even gotten properly wet yet."

"But Maddie, I could get pneumonia, or hypothermia, or—"

"Other things ending in 'ia.'" Maddie said with him. "Now stop making excuses."

And they're just two kids, dancing in the rain, eating candy bars and completely oblivious. Oblivious to what, it isn't known, but oblivious they are. As the rain begins slacking off, the girl pulls the boy to her and kisses him one last time, shivering in the warm shower.

Carey and Zack returns to the hotel room to find Cody toweling off his hair and sliding off his sopping sneakers.

"Why are you all wet?" his mother asks. Zack is running to their room to unpack and practice his new guitar.

"I just went out for a little while," he says vaguely.

"Alone?"

"It was just for a few minutes."

Carey followed him to the bathroom, where he started pulling off his striped polo.

"Butbutbut you could have gotten pneumonia!" She protests. "Or, or hypothermia! Or other illnesses that end in 'ia'!"

Cody divests himself of his white T-shirt and takes his mother's arm.

"You know, mom. There are lots of great reasons for you to be worried, but I'd prefer to discuss them when I'm _not_ _half-naked_." He (gently) pulls her outside the bathroom, retreats, and slams the door.

She stares at the piece of wood for a second, and says wryly, "Oh, how quickly they grow up. It is such a joyful journey."

* * *

This was actually inspired by one night when it was thundering, and I had the overwhelming urge to sit on the roof and watch the rain fall. So I did. It felt great.

Ergh. Review, please. I start back at school tomorrow...I need you guys to cheer me up!


End file.
